Jared Polis drops lawsuit over fracking near his property, but may refile

Boulder congressman sees new role as 'poster boy' in hot-button issue

By Charlie Brennan, Camera Staff Writer

Posted:
07/26/2013 09:59:49 AM MDT

A truck drives past the fracking operation across Weld County Road 5 from property owned by U.S. Rep. Jared Polis, D-Boulder, near Berthoud on Thursday. Polis had filed suit to stop the drilling, but has withdrawn the request in order to collect additional evidence. (Kai Casey / For the Camera)

A scheduled court hearing in the dispute over drilling for natural gas on a property across the street from U.S. Rep. Jared Polis's weekend getaway in unincorporated Weld County was scuttled Friday when the congressman withdrew his complaint -- while retaining the right to refile it.

Before the day was over, both sides fired verbal volleys in a controversy that saw the Boulder congressman representing Colorado's 2nd Congressional District center stage in the latest local drama around hydraulic fracturing -- fracking, to its detractors.

Lawyers for the company doing the drilling, Sundance Energy Inc., of Denver, had filed their own motion in Denver District Court the previous day to dismiss Polis's complaint. The company argued that since the energy extraction was permitted earlier this year as required by the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission, any dispute must first be taken up by the commission, prior to any involvement by the courts.

The energy company's argument was not heard or ruled on by Denver District Judge Kenneth Laff, since it was soon made moot by Polis's own motion to dismiss his complaint "without prejudice," meaning it could be refiled at a later time. Polis's filings are in the name of Mountain Property Improvement LLC, the holding company which has title to Polis's Weld County property.

Polis also has lodged an official complaint over the drilling with the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission, alleging that the activity "created an uninhabitable atmosphere, substantially and unreasonably interfering with the occupancy of my property."

An on-site inspection was carried out by the state in response to that complaint Wednesday.

On Friday, Sundance Energy released this statement:

"Sundance Energy is gratified that this unfounded lawsuit was dropped by Rep. Jared Polis because the claims were completely without merit. The Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission, an independent state agency, conducted an inspection of our operations yesterday and did not find any violations related to the congressman's allegations."

The company added: "Sundance Energy is committed to conducting our operations responsibly and being a good citizen of Weld County and everywhere else we operate. As such, the company is voluntarily installing a noise mitigating barrier and stands ready to discuss any remaining concerns related to our operations. We hope these good faith efforts can set a more positive, constructive tone for any future issues that may arise."

Meanwhile, Polis visited his 50-acre property just east of Berthoud on Friday for the first time since drilling equipment suddenly appeared there July 18. Seeing the drilling underway firsthand did little to mute his anger.

"It's been totally transformed," he said of his rural neighborhood. "It's just... you can't live here. Our lives are upended. I don't know what the future holds. There's very little you can do, under Colorado law."

The Polis neighbor whose property is being drilled is identified in court documents as Irene Hornung, and state records show the owner of both the surface property and mineral rights there are one and the same. Hornung could not be reached for comment Friday.

Polis critical of Weld County

Polis had strong words for Weld County authorities, who do not have regulatory control over the issuance of extraction permits, and look more favorably on the industry than, for example, Boulder County, where a moratorium on new oil and gas permitting was extended last month by 18 months.

"Weld County is really completely wild in this regard," said Polis, speaking from his property on Weld County Road 5. "Homeowners have no rights other than that which they have under Colorado law. And I think people will look warily upon moving to Weld County for that very reason, and it hurts their long-term prospects."

Weld County Commissioner Doug Rademacher, who has advocated for the county's secession from Colorado to form the union's 51st state, dismissed Polis's remarks as "laughable."

"I would think the congressman needs to be educated, since Weld County is one of the fastest growing counties, next to Douglas County, in the state," Rademacher said. "There are people moving here from his county and Larimer County every day."

Pointing out that Weld County's only authority in regulating the energy extraction industry involves issuing permits to access the concerned property, Rademacher said everything else is out of Weld County's hands. He did note, however, that the county last year started offering free testing of residents' well water.

"If he (Polis) has issues on emissions, or water contamination, or anything to do with practice, he needs to aim those at the state government, or the federal government, for that matter," Rademacher said. "We have no purview over that, whatsoever."

'Grab some headlines'

The dispute is being monitored by Energy In Depth, a research, education and public outreach campaign of the Independent Petroleum Association of America.

"This lawsuit was active just long enough for the congressman to grab some headlines and generate some publicity for his anti-industry political views," said Courtney Loper, the organization's mountain states field director. "In fact, it looks an awful lot like the congressman started suing people and pitching stories to the media before he even filed a complaint with the state of Colorado."

Loper cited the follow-up report to Polis's complaint on file with the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission. It confirms that a site inspection was performed Wednesday, and states, "No odors were identified except engine exhaust," and that wind conditions precluded a noise survey.

It also showed that a state inspector worked with a Sundance representative on noise mitigation, forklift operation and installation of a noise wall on the northwest side of location.

Polis dismissed the findings of Wednesday's on-site inspection. And he denied any suggestion that his complaint was a bid for publicity or a political ploy.

"I feel like the universe has selected me to be a poster boy for reining in out-of-control fracking," said Polis. "If I have more of a soap box now... I will continue to fight for Colorado families."

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